The New Guy series, Part One: Suprises Abound
by DiSiLLUSiON
Summary: The first part of the 'The New Guy On The Block' series. There's a new, superior player entering the galactic neighbourhood, and nothing will remain the same. Crossover with Stargate SG-1, though SG-1 will not be featured here.
1. Chapter I

Title: 'The New Guy' series, Part One: Surprises Abound.  
  
Author: DiSiLLUSiON aka Elco K.  
  
Series: 'The New Guy on the Block'; A crossover series between Farscape and Stargate, with the intention of becoming huge. Really, really huge.  
  
Description: The first part of the 'The New Guy On The Block' series. There's a new, superior player entering the galactic neighbourhood, and nothing will remain the same. Crossover with Stargate SG-1, though SG-1 will not be featured here. Part One of the series will be set 300 years after the Stargate SG-1 series, and right at the end of the episode Unrealized Reality from Farscape. How that's possible will be explained. Really. grin  
  
Genre: Mostly Action/Adventure, though there will be some very dark pieces and some very teartube-shattering pieces as well. It's my first fanfic ever, and I intend to try out everything. Well, exept for graphic sexual fiction. Go play with your girlfriend or watch pr0nmovies if you're horny, you won't find any erotic fiction under my penname, sorry.  
  
Rating: I have no idea. In my home country it would probably be rated for all ages. Though, there will be swearing and there will be fighting scenes. And the rating will probably get up when I've added later, darker chapters. It's an experiment for me, so just treat it R or something, allright? That way you can't blame me if parts will be very graphic. grin  
  
Comments: As I've already said, this is my first shot at writing fanfic ever. So it probably wont be excellent, though I'd very much like constructive criticism! Also, my native language is not English, so there might be some weird grammar and spelling errors in here. Also, this has not been betaread, for no-one that I know of likes to read fanfiction, so I don't have anyone to beta read this. Just point it out to me if you find anything weird, allright? Thanks.  
  
Feedback: ...would be very, very much appreciated. Also, I am always open for ideas for plot lines or details and corrections concerning canon or other criticism is always welcome.  
  
Disclaimer: Farscape isn't owned by me, or the series would have never have been cancelled. Stargate isn't owned by me either, allright? You can sue me, but there's nothing to pluck from a bald chicken, so go ahead. Also, any original characters may be used, but I would like an email with the link, so I can read whatever you've done with that character.  
  
Anyway, let's get on to the story. No animals were harmed during the creation, and you are safe to eat your microwave popcorn without your brains frying due to the combination with my weird fanfic. Have fun!  
  
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-  
  
The last thing we know about John, is that after his talks with 'Einstein', John found himself back in normal space. Where exactly, he couldn't tell. He was floating around a moon. Turning his back to the natural sattelite, he saw a planet. Or atleast, that's probably wat it used to be. No atmosphere as far as he could tell, and no water either. Just rock. Plain old rock. Lots and lots of rock. Reminded him of Mars, actually. Just a whole lot bigger. That, ofcourse, was relative, since he's never actually floated in orbit around Mars. Still, it seemed a whole lot bigger.  
  
After trying his comms, with no reaction whatsoever, and after a few microts of waiting, it seemed that the universe wasn't directly dumping a new problem onto his lap, so he did everything in his power that he could do at such a time. He begun singing '999 bottles of beer on the wall'. The stray thought that that particular action was not positive concerning his oxygensupply was quickly squashed down. That didn't mean that that thought was false, however. Especially since he forgot to check his oxygensupply beforehand. He just had enough to linger in front of the wormhole for an arn or so, and return to Moya. Ofcourse, at this point there's no Moya in sight.  
  
Before John even hit 980 bottles, his oxygen supply had detoriated enough for him to have to struggle to stay concious. Before he fall into the relaxing state of non-awareness he did see one huge vessel dropping by on his doorstep. Well, not as huge as a Scarran Dreadnaught, but still huge. It was a light gray, with an unusual shape. It was definately not Scarren. It wasn't Peacekeeper either. And, it probably wasn't Nebari. Using what oxygen he had left in his body, his brain managed to formulate a single response, before he passed out:  
  
"Oops.."  
  
-  
  
-  
  
"Supreme Commander, there is a spacetime curvature opening 25 parsecs from here."  
  
Thor, the Supreme Commander of the Asgard Fleet, sat on the Commander's chair on the bridge of "The Carter", the flag vessel in the fleet. Being an O'Neill class vessel, it was a sight to be seen. They were returning to Othalla, after defeating a few Replicator vessels wich have sprung up in the Gotl'k arm of their galaxy. The replicators on the planet with the time-dilationfield were extinct when the Asgard, together with Humans finally found a way to permanently disassemble them. But, not every Replicator was in range when the 'call' was made, and a small number of Replicator vessels coutinued to be found all over the local galaxycluster, giving the impression that this Plague would last forever.  
  
He sat somewhat straigher (if that is even possible), and looked at his Main Science Officer.  
  
"Wich vessel is it? The Prometheus?" A few species had managed to develop wormhole technology to the point where they could use it to drive their interstellar space-fearing vessels, as had the Asgard, though they could not use it do to a very old agreement with the Ancients. And though the Ancients haven't been sighted in the last 10.000 standard planetary rotations or so, the Asgard are nothing if not honorable, and they will honor their agreements. Excluding radicals like Loki, ofcourse. Of the few species that did develop and use it however, there was only one who made, and was allowed to make, regular jumps from and to Asgard space; Humans.  
  
Humans. Now there's an oddity if the universe ever saw one. Their first spacefearing vessel was built a merely hundred years after their first atmospheric flight, while most species in the galactic neighbourhood take almost a thousand years to accomplish the same. Though it was upgraded by Thor himself with Asgard Defense Shields and an upgraded Hyperdrive, it was still mainly Human (reverse-)enigneering. Now, three hundred years after the launch of their first Prometheus, the X-303, they have just launched their latest incarnation 6 months ago. As the flagship of the Human fleet, harboring the latest technology, the Prometheus is quite a vessel indeed. Almost as large as an Asgard battlecruiser, it has rudimentary transporters , a Displacement drive, gravimetric sub-light engines and the weaponry to match.  
  
After defeating the Goa'uld 250 years ago, Humans have captured, and used, the Goa'uld's ships to strengthen their defenses until enough Human-built vessels were available. After 30 years or so, there were, but the Goa'uld vessels remain in service, mainly because of those Tok'ra who wanted to stand by the Human side but preferred Goa'uld technology over Human technology. Over the years, species were discovered, a few little battles broke out and alliances were made, though no alliance was as strong as that between them and the Asgard.  
  
Anyway, back to the story. Since only a few people know how to use Wormholes as an interstellar drive without using a gate system of sorts, and the only one wich entered Asgard space frequently, Thor's first assumtion was that a Human ship was coming. Imagine his surprise, when his assumptions were proven wrong.  
  
"No sir, the signature does not correspond to those formed by a Human Displacement drive", the Main Science Officer replied.  
  
Thor was surprised, to say the least. But before he could formulate a question as to wether it did belong to then, his Main Science Officer continued:  
  
"The signature is that.. of the Ancients."  
  
Next to this, the surprise he had felt only a second ago seemed nothing. It was an Ancient signature! The Ancients had all but disappeared from the Galactic Neighbourhood a long time ago, and though they were strong allies, neither the Asgard nor the Nox has heard from them since. And the Furlings, well, let's just leave that bit for now, shall we?  
  
"Are you certain?", Thor asked.  
  
"Quite certain, Supreme Commander. The spacetime curvature had a very distinct signature, that of the Ancients. It has already closed, but it has deposited a humanoid. Correction: A Human. I am unable to distinguish if life signs are present from this distance, Captain", his Main Science Officer replied.  
  
This was interesting indeed.  
  
"Engage the Hyperdrive and transport the humanoid to the medical area. Humanoids usually cannot survive being in space without a vessel."  
  
Besides being very honorable creatures, the Asgard also had a peculiar knack for stating the obvious. The Asgard battlecruiser glowed blue for a moment, and disappeared into hyperspace, only to exit it a second later.  
  
-  
  
-  
  
John awoke to find himself in a bare looking room, made of grey metal. He was lying suspended in mid-air, and he heard steps behind him. John moved his head to take a look. Crichton had experienced so much in his time in the Uncharted Territories, that there wasn't much that shocked him any longer. What he saw here, however, did.  
  
"Woah!"  
  
He thought and said it out loud at the same moment.  
  
"Though I've seen enough to make Spielberg rewrite his books, I've never seen you guys. So I guess Roswell wasn't some weather balloon, huh?"  
  
Typical of John, when the situation seemed uncontrollable by some degree, he resorted to humor. Though he also did it when the situation was controllable. And when the situation was neither. And when it was both. The alien looked at him, blinked his eyes, and spoke.  
  
"You are awake, good."  
  
Meanwhile, John was overcoming his shock, and retorted:  
  
"So, who the frell are you? Where's Mulder?"  
  
The alien looked confused by that statement, but continued anyway:  
  
"I am Head Medical Officer Odin, and you're onboard the Asgard flagship the Carter. We found you exiting a wormhole and you were near oxygen depletion. Also, we found some anomalies in your brain that we corrected."  
  
"What, YOU FRELLED WITH MY BRAIN?!?!"  
  
Crichton became angry, very angry. Most humanoids often suffer from a few moments of severe emotional unstability when they suddenly get what most Humans by this time called 'the Asgard's Hyperdinner'. Though the biggest reason was simply the idea of another alien species running errand in his frying pan. And the Asgard Medical Officer seemed to shrink back a little. Though their dealings with Humans were becoming more common each day, Asgard still had a born instinct to run away from danger, and an angry human, well, it just screamed danger to them. But he recovered nicely, and continued:  
  
"As I have stated, we found inconsistencies within your brain, we are surprised you had no problems functioning thus far. To be safe, I have corrected the problem. You have lost no memories, no knowledge, in fact everything is very much intact, and nothing was read, probed, taken, or viewed in any form, except for the remains of a crude chip we found."  
  
While the Head Medical Officer was talking, he manipulated a few controls and Crichton was moved upright and given control of his facilities back.  
  
"Cool trick. Wait, what, so Harvey's finally gone for real?"  
  
At this, the Head Medical Officer looked confused again.  
  
"Who or what is this Harvey?"  
  
"Never mind.. Am I being held prisoner?"  
  
"You are not our prisoner. And, I will let you out, in a moment. The Supreme Commander has requested your presence in the Garden Hall first, I will take you there. After that, we could contact Earth's Space Force, and have a vessel pick you up. Or, we could, alternatively, 'drop you off somewhere', as you Humans would say it."  
  
"Woah, wait a minute. What's this Earth Space Force you're talking about, and how do you know my species?"  
  
John did not trust this a bit. Little grey people that seemed to be taken from an episode of the X-Files? Earth Space Force? It seemed to twisted. Though nothing really looked twisted any longer since the Farscape got shot through that wormhole in Earth orbit. Though John still had some nasty feelings. As he checked his weapons, and mentally chastised himself for not doing so earlier, he found that his pulse pistols were missing.  
  
"Where are my pulse pistols?"  
  
"As I said, after you have spoken with Supreme Commander Thor, you will be free to leave. Your weapons will be returned to you at that time."  
  
'Hmm, figures', John thought to himself.  
  
"Well, let's get this show on the road then, shall we? Show me the way", John said, extending his arm, "ehh", moving his arm the other way, "where ever the door is. Do you even have any doors here?"  
  
Odin had some thoughts himself. It seems this Human has never been on an Asgard vessel before. Quite peculiar, though not improbable, nor rare. What was even more peculiar was that this Human appeared to have no knowledge of his own species' military. And, what was the most peculiar, was that this Human was wearing a spacesuit the computer identified as to be from 'Peacekeeper' origin, wich as far as he knew, the Humans did not have contact with yet, and that he didn't seem to recognize an Asgard. By now, though not regularly, Asgard did visit Earth, ocassionaly, and the other way around. Even if a Human hasn't seen an Asgard in person, he or she certainly would know what an Asgard would look like.  
  
But these mysteries were for Supreme Commander Thor to solve. He took the Human out of the Medical Area, and guided him through the vessel to the Garden Hall. Meanwhile, telepatically contacting Thor to relay the recent findings.  
  
-  
  
-  
  
Well, this was creepy. He had passed several of the aliens, and they all looked the same! No, scrap that, they looked exáctly the same! This was getting weirder and weirder. He was prompted to ask if they were robots of some kind, but thought better of it.  
  
After a long walk through corridors that all seemed exactly the same, that Medical guy stopped.  
  
"We have arrived. Go around the corner and you will find the Garden Hall. Pick a spot you like, and the Supreme Commander will be with you shortly."  
  
And, before John could utter a word, the Medical Officer left.  
  
"Well, I could try to find my way out, but without Wynona that's not going to be easy. Especially considering that I don't even now how I got here, 'cause everything looks the damn same to me.. Let's have a look at that garden then, see what that Thor guy wants, it's not like I have any other choice at the moment", he muttered under his breath.  
  
John rounded the corner and his mouth fell to the deck. Though having seen indoor enviroments before, on Scorpius' Command Carrier, that was nothing compared to this. The area seemed absolutely huge, blue sky, little waterfalls, grass, trees, you name it, the works. Except for the doorway he got through, and a few other doorways he saw here and there, there was absolutely nothing indicating that this wasn't on a real planet. There even were some butterflies and alien looking animals scurrying here and there!  
  
"Got to get me one of these, back on Moya! This would beat the terrace any day!", he grinned, "no stars though."  
  
Feeling somewhat uplifed, he walked a bit, until he found a place wich had the same feeling as his dock back on Earth, where he used to go fishing. He even saw a fishing pole and a can of worms next to it. Taking a look around, and seeing no-one, he shrugged his shoulders and sat down at the dock, doing something he wanted to do ever since he got shot to the Uncharteds. Go Fishing!  
  
"Though I wonder if there are any fish in here", he muttered to himself after a few minutes, ", cuz nothing seems to bite. But hey, what does it matter."  
  
A voice behind him said: "There are no seaborn creatures in this part of the lake, though I am surprised you chose this particular spot."  
  
John hid his surprise at being caught unawares, using humor:  
  
"Well, if you ain't got no fish in here, why the fishing pole then?"  
  
To his amazement, the alien answered his jibe:  
  
"This is to honor a long-past friend. His main pasttime was fishing, and though I have no regret never have taken him up on his offer to go fishing, I did however, found in myself the need to honor him in a way."  
  
"Well, that's all good, and while were on the personal track anyway, I wanna know, who the frell are you?"  
  
"I am Thor, Supreme Commander of the Asgard Fleet, and sole remaining Initiator of the Asgard-Human alliance."  
  
"Woah Askart-Human alliance? What is this crap? How do you know my species? I want some answers!" John said, becoming somewhat angry.  
  
To his credit, Thor didn't flinch an inch.  
  
"Asgard-Human alliance. We have known of your species for a few thousand of your years now, and have initiated official contact 300 years ago. Or actually, the Humans did. And before you ask, yes, I assume we did not have contact in your time. That is also an assumption, since your spacetime signature is different, it means that you are most probably from the past. You are from this reality though."  
  
"What do you mean, from the past?"  
  
"One thing at a time. I also have a few questions for you. First, how did you create a wormhole, without a craft, and with the signature of The Ancients? Second, how is it you are in posession of a Peacekeeper space suit, since your race should not yet have established contact with them, especially concerning that you are most probably from the past? And Third", but John broke in.  
  
"What makes you think I know how to make wormholes? And why should I answer any of your questions anyway?"  
  
"I understand your need for validity of what I have said. I can provide this, but tell me this: What is the last Earth year you were on Earth?"  
  
It seemed to John that there wasn't any harm in giving the alien that, though it seemed for no reason either.  
  
"1999. Why do you care?"  
  
"I can validate my claims. First, I know you can influence a 'wormhole', as you call it, since all Humans have this unique ability, though most Humans do not know this. This is the main reason Humans are on their way to becoming the Fifth Race in the Great Alliance, regaining the knowledge they have lost over time. Since you did not exit the space time curvature with a craft, you have to had influenced it directly. Though what puzzles me is the Ancients' signature. Did you encounter one of the Ancients?"  
  
"You said you would validate your claims. I don't see the need to answer your questions any further."  
  
John felt like he was back at the youth court house, after some stunts he pulled when he was a kid. So, he was being pigheaded and he knew it. Still, he felt some satisfaction in this. Though what the alien told him did stir his feelings up a bit. What if what the alien said was true? That all Humans have the latent ability to influence wormholes? Then not only he, but every single Human is in danger if someone got to know that fact!  
  
Thor waved with his hand, and a transparent viewscreen appeared right in front of them. While he talked, images and video accentuated what he said.  
  
"1999, Earth, Milky Way galaxy. Comprised of aproximately 6 billion Humans, no interstellar capability. Some small non-manned travels in their inner solar system. Stargate Project has begun, Earth teams are beginning to explore planets in the neighbourhood."  
  
"What is this crap about some Stargate Project?"  
  
"You are John Crichton, are you not?"  
  
'Oh damn. He knows my name. Usually, that spells out DANGER', John thought.  
  
"Who is this Crichton?"  
  
"Do not play innocent. The only Human that left Earth in the Earth year 1999, matching your description, is Commander John Crichton, perishing in orbit in the Farscape 1 Module. Though it does make sense now, due to the solar flare activity of your sun, Earth's latent wormhole probably opened. You are John Crichton and you've been trough Earth's latent wormhole instead of perishing as the data records indicate."  
  
"Look, you want my wormhole knowledge? Get in line behind everyone else who want's a knack at what's inside my head. I'm gonna tell ya though, it ain't gonna happen. I'd rather die, taking my knowledge with me. And soon, my friends will be here, so you can't hold me for long."  
  
The last line was a bit of a stretch, since he didn't knew where D'argo and the others were and even if they could save his ass if they were here.  
  
"Commander Crichton. I have no intention of holding you against your will. Also, I have no interest in the knowledge you have, for the Asgard also have the ability to create 'wormholes'. The only thing I am interested in is how you survived, alone, on the other side of your galaxy. I knew Humans are a resilient species, but hearing the reports from my Medical Officer, I am surprised you are even alive, also considering the races in the space Earth's latent 'wormhole' must have dropped you in. What I am also interested in is how you could have created an Ancient signature. Either you met the Ancients, or you learnt how to imprint a signature yourself, but that is not knowledge the Humans could have logically mastered yet, no Human has advanced up to that point."  
  
"Okay, let me give you a deal. I tell ya the outlines of what happened, if you're so interested, and you tell me what has happened to Earth since I'm gone, if we're really in the future that is."  
  
"You 'have a deal', Commander Crichton."  
  
So John told him the outline of his story, what happened, the meeting with the ancients, Dam-Ba-Da, general outlines of all the big stuff and even about 'Einstein'. Supreme Commander Thor, in his turn, told John all about Earth.  
  
"So you had a meeting with Them? The creators of the Ancients? You are quite fortunate indeed, even the Asgard never had that honor, though we know of the creators."  
  
"Yeah well, in his words 'you are here to perish, i am here to affect that outcome', I wasn't really that honored. But I came out allright."  
  
"Indeed. Alot of things have cleared up. Now, let me tell you about Earth."  
  
"1999. The year you left. Earth had a Stargate Program, in Colorado mountain, under the NORAD facility."  
  
"What, under NORAD? No kiddin'. So Sam must have known about it, that's why she left the Farscape Project!"  
  
"You are referring to Samantha Carter?"  
  
"What.. How do you know her? You've been digging in my memories, haven't you?"  
  
"Certainly not. Carter was one of the members of SG1, the main Stargate Team, and has helped us many times. She helped us defeat the replicators. If it wasn't for her, and the rest of SG1, the Asgard would have surely perished by now. My vessel isn't named the Carter for nothing."  
  
"So.. you ship's called after Sam? Woah.. she sure made some friends out there.. Probably did a hell of a lot better then I did."  
  
"By using the Stargate, Earth however, also made some enemies. They ultimately defeated the Goa'uld, but not without heavy losses. Thus the forming of Earth's Space Force."  
  
All the while, images and videos played back on the floating holoscreen. John felt a knot in his stomach form at the thought that no-one he knew back on Earth was still alive, and also about the probability that he could have come home to an Earth that was bombarded from orbit by these Goa'uld people.  
  
"So.. there's nothing to come back to."  
  
Thor had spent quite some time around Humans, and had anticipated Crichton's thinking.  
  
"Though most of the people you know are now long deceased, that does not mean that there is nothing to go back to. If you want, that is. As I have said before, you have several options. You can stay here until you have decided. We'll give you access to the terminal in your quarters, so you can 'brush up' your history, as you would say."  
  
"Yeah I'd like that..."  
  
With this, Thor disappeared in a glow. John saw everything turn white in a second, but when the light faded he found himself somewhere else.  
  
"Woah.. Nice tricks indeed."  
  
So he sat down, figuring out how to use the terminal provided.  
  
-  
  
-  
  
His head spinning with information, he lay back down on the bunk. He got to sleep immediately, since he was exhausted for some reason, but when he woke up he figured out how to use the terminal, and learned a lot. So he was 300 years in the future! He even toyed with the possibility that his last wormhole jive dumped him in the future, but the information these Asgard have on Peacekeeper/Scarran politics seems quite recent, though a bit scarce. So it must be the first wormhole then. And Earth never was in danger from the Peacekeepers! Atleast, not with Earth's current Space Force and the fact that the Peacekeeper's wouldn't send an entire armada to Earth, thinking it to be just some primitive backwater planet. Scorpius could have gone to Earth with his command carrier and would not even reach Earth before he would be blasted out of the sky, as far as he could tell! Well, that definately turned the tables a bit.  
  
Suddenly his terminal beeped, and he heard someone, through some hidden speaker somewhere, say "Commander Chrichton. Thor requests your presence in the Main Briefing Room. Have you sufficiently rested?", and after a "Yes' that he said, more to himself then to anybody else, he was transported to the Main Briefing Room. Thor was already there.  
  
"Have you made your decision?", Thor asked.  
  
"I think it might be best if I informed the officials on Earth, since if the Peacekeepers got head about the fact that Earth vessels have a Displacement Drive, they'll definately want to get one, with whatever means they have at their disposal. And that wouldn't be pretty."  
  
"A prudent decision. Since I have anticipated your decision, The Carter is now in orbit of Earth, and we can be transported down at any time."  
  
"Let's do it", John grinned, before sobering again.  
  
- 


	2. Chapter II

  
  
-  
  
To Admiral Rodzjenko, things have suddenly taken a deep dive into the unknown. Before, he was just getting ready to call it a day, when an Asgard battleship arrived in Earth's orbit, well, two actually, without warning, and dropped off a Human in the middle of his office! And to add to that, it seems that this Human was an Astronaut, from 300 years in the past, long thought perished! And the Asgard confirmed this!  
  
"Well, this is all quite disconcerting. And you say they know where Earth is and will stop at nothing before they get a Displacement Drive in their hands?"  
  
John nodded. It seemed that Humans had made themself a new enemy, though inavertedly.  
  
"And you say that because they know you arrived in a Wormhole, and you have some knowledge about the phenomenon, and they do not, they are now after Earth?"  
  
"Yes, that's what I said, didn't I?"  
  
This debriefing was quickly draining all the energy out of John. He had been in debriefing for about 5 hours now, and he needed a good snack and somewhere to rest. He never knew a discussion could take this much energy.  
  
"Then why should we not imprison you? Since you brought this on our lap, not us."  
  
At that point Commander Freya, Thor's 'child', who had joined the debriefing while her father returned to Othalla, stepped in:  
  
"The projected course of the 2 Human explorer vessels that are furthest away in that general erea would probably make contact with a Peacekeeper Command Carrier within the next 2 of your years. Even if Commander John Crichton was not shot through a 'wormhole', and the Peacekeepers would not yet have knowledge of your species, they soon would anyway, and they would come to Earth with an armada as large as they could gather, and your chances would be minute. This contact is destined to be, just as you are destined to be the liberators of that part of your galaxy."  
  
She continued.  
  
"The Asgard have known about the explosive state of affairs in that quadrant of your galaxy for some time now, though the timetable has now 'upped', as you would say. There are only a few peaceful species who, at this point, can take on both the Peacekeepers, the Scarrans and the Nebari in that area, with help, and most have no reason to. Except for you, and us. And, as you know, the Asgard are still rebuilding due to the devestating losses we suffered from the Replicators, we can only spare a few ships if an emergency arrives. For the rest you are on your own."  
  
At this point the Admiral tried to get a word in, but Freya would have none of it.  
  
"Admiral, you must realize that there is destined to be war with the Peacekeepers sooner or later. They are comparable to the Nazi's from your past. They will stop at nothing and no-one before they have control of your entire galaxy, and, at this point, Earth's Space Force is the only spacefaring entity who has a fair chance of stopping that. Especially because when the Peacekeepers are dealth with, you will have do deal with the Scarrans and the Nebari as well. To that unofficial triumverate, you are a prime target. As it stands now, all three species would not hesitate to either torture you, destroy you, or mind-cleanse you. I tell you this, you can wait until war is inevitable and delivered on your doorstep, and we will assist in what way we can. But you would condemn a large portion of your people to death, and mine as well. If you choose to act now, you can keep the colatteral damage to a minimum, and free that entire quadrant from the wrath of those three species, to grow and flourish. Whatever you choose, the Asgard will support you, for we have an alliance. But, I will warn you: Choose carefully. For the fact that we have an alliance does not mean that we support you without question. If it seems that my father was incorrect in initiating the alliance due to the possibilities he sees in Humanity, the alliance will be off as soon as matters are dealth with, and you will be on your own."  
  
'Heh, I'm beginning to like these people. No bullshitting them. And the Admiral looks positively scared, as if he could wet his pants at any moment now. Good', John thought.  
  
"Is that a threat, Freya?"  
  
"Commander Freya, and no, not a threat. A promise. The Asgard will not let infantile Human burocracy stand in the way of what must be done."  
  
"All right", the Admiral didn't like this one bit, bit it's not as if he has any choice.  
  
"This meeting is recessed, I expect you back 4 hours from now. John, my secretary will show you to your temporary quarters, and Freya, you will"  
  
But Freya has already transported back to her ship. The Admiral sighed, and called his secretary.  
  
-  
  
-  
  
"Captain Hawk, I'm pleased you came back at high speed, this is very important."  
  
"Well, Admiral, lay it on me."  
  
The Admiral told some of the Highlights of John's story, in particularly concerning the Peacekeepers, Scarrans and Nebari in the area, as well as what Freya had said.  
  
"It seems, Captain, we don't really have a choice. You are to take the Prometheus, with a full fighter complement and 2 escorts, into the Uncharted Territories and discreetly assess the situation. If you run into any Peacekeeper, Scarran or Nebari vessels, try to make peaceful contact, and only fire when they leave you no choice. I say this because we can't dismiss the possibility that when they find out Earth is more advanced then they thought, they'll back off. Atleast, we hope they will. If you have collected enough information about the state of affairs, and wether or not war is inevitable, I expect you back here on the double."  
  
"Sir, if I may ask... Why the Prometheus? The Prommie is the flagship of the fleet, and I'm not saying I don't like this assignment, but aren't we not needed here? We have explorers out there, haven't we?"  
  
"A valid point. First of all, we have explorers out there, but, they are somewhat dated. Second of all, the reason we are not sending an other ship out there, is because the Prometheus, due to the huge recent technological developments in the Displacement Drive field, has the largest displacement capability of all the ships in the fleet, you know that. You can jump the farthest, and you would be on site the fastest, by far. And, there's a wanted side effect in all of this, the majority of the people want Space Force to go on exploring, gallivanting around the galaxy, instead of patrolling shipping lanes and provoking minor species. Because that is how we are viewed in the media. The greatly shared opinion is that we don't explore enough. By sending out the Prometheus, under the guise of exploring, everybody's happy."  
  
"Smart move, Admiral."  
  
Captain Hawk smirked, he didn't like the admiral one bit, actually, he didn't like any stuffed up person who's caught up in the thrills of burocracy, but this one is nicely thought out, he had to give the Admiral some credit.  
  
"It is done then. You are to take Commander Crichton aboard as an informant, just keep a seat open on the bridge. His information is invaluable once you've arrived. I believe the mission is clear?"  
  
Both Captain Hawk and Commander Crichton nodded.  
  
"Then you are dismissed. And, gentlemen, good luck and godspeed."  
  
"And may the force be with you", Crichton muttered under his breath. He always had a dislike of beurocrats, and he pestered them whenever he thought he could get away with it. Not that he wanted to pester them though, it was more like an automatic reaction, he couldn't help himself, honestly. Apparently, Captain Hawk thought the same way because he snickered and didn't even tried to hide it while they were walking out of the Admiral's Office. Once outside, Hawk patted John on the shoulder.  
  
"I think I'm gonna like you already."  
  
-  
  
-  
  
John had been on the Prometheus for 2 months now, and they had just entered the outer systems that marked the border of what the Peacekeepers called Uncharted Space, according to data the Asgard gave them. They had run into a few alien vessels, not much. Wich was expected, since the Prommie wasn't exactly a small vessel, and the two escorts that flew at her sides weren't exactly freighters either. Pirates stayed the hell away from her, and the other vessels that crossed her path had no dealings with her. And, since Hawk didn't feel the need to overly explore and meet new species, he didn't try to hail them. A few hailed the Prometheus though, of wich one vessel belonged to a Confederation of species, a loose alliance of worlds, wich had Hawk interested. Promises for further contact were made. That was something for the Admirals to work out.  
  
Meanwhile, John was getting bored. Really, really bored. He was used to the universe dumping all sorts of problems on his lap one after the other, and he hadn't had 3 good nights of sleep on a row since he got shot to the Uncharteds. Though that changed when he got onboard the Prometheus.  
  
First, everything was exciting. Brushing up on history was very interesting. (he couldn't believe Israël was still in a state of war with the Palestinians! Good thing the UN put a shielded dome around the whole damn country, so any large weapon would affect only them, and all of them, so they wouldn't try anything brash.) And, after he learned all the basics about what happened on Earth since he left, he became enamoured into something even more interesting, the technology! The Displacement drive was fascinating, he even gave them some tips, gotten from the knowledge the Ancients put inside his head (though the Humans did not now of this). He figured, if they already knew how to use wormholes, what's the problem in polishing their theories a bit? His knowledge astounded some of the science officers and engineers, and one even asked him outright where he got that information from, but he wouldn't bulge. Finally, they acquised with that, and got to work on their new theories.  
  
So, for a while, things were interesting. But only for a while. The 'newness' had worn off, and he already had explored every nook and cranny of this large vessel. That's when he couldn't take it any longer, and decided to talk to the Captain. He got onto the bridge, and adressed Hawk.  
  
"Captain, could I speak to you in private for a moment?"  
  
Hawk did not seem the least bit surprised, and replied while he stood up from his command chair.  
  
"Commander Cain, you have the bridge. I will be in the Captain's Room."  
  
He motioned for John to follow him, and they walked into the Captain's Room. The captain stood still in front of a window, from wich the stars were visible, with his back to John. When the door closed, he turned around with a smile on his face, while he anticipated John's first question and nodded.  
  
"You can speek freely, Commander."  
  
"Okay.. well. I'm becoming bored. Really, really bored. I'm sick of the boredom. Absolutely sick of it. I'm used to having a big glowing target painted on my ass, and people going after me. That hasn't happened ever since I'm on the Prometheus. You've rarely had me needed on the bridge, and I've been spending my time digging through the ship's computers, and talking wormhole theory with the onboard scientists. And it ain't interesting anymore. Sir."  
  
"I am amazed that you held out this long."  
  
"Captain?"  
  
"Just as I said, if I were you I would have died of boredom a month ago. Not that I'm not dying of boredom right now, ship's paperwork isn't exactly thrilling, but I signed up for that job, so I can't complain. But, I also have something for you. My orders are to assess the situation and gain information on the current state of affairs as discreetly as possible. Seeing as we're arriving in a big ass warship with 2 escorts, we're not exactly a small blip on the radar. People are gonna notice, that's for sure. It might be prudent to send out a shuttle or a fighter to do reconnisance, dig up some information, buy some charts and stuff. Also, because we grow more then enough food in the garden for twice our entire complement, we have an excess. Add that to the fact that it would not be a bad idea to get currency that is used in this part of town, should we ever need it, I think it's not a bad idea to go sell some of our food. Most planets around here are commerce planets, after all. I had hoped you would like to head the reconissance team?"   
  
That last senctence was said with a small smirk, since the Captain already knew what John's answer was going to be.  
  
"Gladly, sir!"  
  
John was wearing a huge smile.  
  
"Heh, that's settled then. Take Commander Cain and 2 men from the Tactical division with you. Though oficially, Commander Cain outranks you do to your status as an informant, you will head this mission. I can't have anything blow up in our face because of incompetence due to the fact that we have little knowledge of this part of space. I have already talked this over with Commander Cain and he forsees no problem."  
  
"You.. foresaw me coming here?"  
  
"Well yeah, it was either that, or I would have commed you anyway."  
  
"Okay, when can I leave?"  
  
"Report to the Main Hangar Bay in 2 hours. There's a commerce planet nearby, we could as well start there, it will take about 6 hours from now for the Displacement generators to fully charge again, so we can't jump anywere in that time anyway. You may choose the type of vessel you think would be the least inconspicuous. Though I would advise against using a workpod, since they have no armarment."  
  
Again, the last sentence was said with a smirk. John replied in earnest:  
  
"Well, Sir, I could always jury-rig an ion cannon on it."  
  
"I'm sure you can. If there's nothing else, you're dismissed."  
  
So, John found himself wandering the corridors to his quarters, getting a shower and something to drink before he headed out. Not that he hadn't showered today, it's just that knowing he'll be outside again seemed to freshen his mood quite a bit, and he reasoned that a fresh shower wouldn't hurt.  
  
After the shower he dressed up, got something to drink and took a long good look at himself in the mirror. After so long a time wearing Peacekeeper clothes, this was quite a change. Though the Earth Force uniform was also made from mainly black leather, the white and blue leather parts contrasted stark with the red leather parts often found on Peacekeeper uniforms. The general look was all black, but with white at the shoulders and blue at the front. He still couldn't get entirely used to that, though this uniform was more flattering, and was more comfortable then a Peacekeeper uniform. It was probably the white upstanding collar that did it, John thought.  
  
'I almost look like a frelling waiter!'  
  
A while later he was strolling through the Main Hangar Bay, picking a ship. The bay was huge, there were rows and rows of fighters here, and between the rows of fighters there were a few rows of larger vessels, probably troop transports of some kind. He likened them to PK Marauders, just faster looking. Add that to the fact that while the fighters were pitch black, with a blue glow coming from their wingtips, the troop transports were completely white, they were eye-catching. Not what he needed if he didn't want to be noticed. A scout would be preferable. After strolling for a while, he came to a technician who was busy on one of the troop transports, so he walked up to her.  
  
"Hey, you busy..."  
  
The technician turned around, and John saw her rank. The fact that she was quite attractive hadn't escaped him either when he saw her a few days ago in the Galley.  
  
"... Luitenant?"  
  
"Hailey, sir! No, I'm just fixing some problems on this thing. It seems that with the bonus of having the newest models of crafts with the latest technology, the Yards didn't even have time to iron out the bugs. Figures. They never have their act straight, if you ask me. So what can I do for you, Commander? I assume you're finally going off to a commerce planet?"  
  
"Yeah, it's just that.. Well.. I need a vessel that can keep a low profile, and hold four people. So a fighter is too small, but something like this", he pointed at the troop transport the technician was working on, "is definately going to be noticed."  
  
Not that he didn't knew they have scouts. Hailey probably thought of that also, but she played along anyway. And, as he reasoned to himself, though Aeryn would always be the one for him, there's no harm in flirting a bit, now is there?  
  
"That's one thing that's for sure. Pearlwhite paint is surely an eye-catcher. Wait, I have just the vessel you need."  
  
The Luitenant walked away, and motioned for John to follow her, so he followed in her strides. After the got past a few rows, they got to the middle of the bay, where a few rows of another type of craft were.  
  
"The Scout Mark Twelve. These are the latest in reconnisance craft Space Force has to offer. Ability to hold five people, the fastest gravimetric sub-light enignes available, a cloaking screen, multiple layered defense shields and good firepower makes her the ultimate scout. My brother had a hand in designing her himself, Sir."  
  
That much was obvious, she was looking as proud as a mother who told about the fact that her child had talked for the first time. John, for his part, smiled.  
  
"That's going to be perfect, thank you."  
  
By that time, he saw Commander Cain walking into the Hangar Bay with 2 tactical officers, and when he looked his way, he motioned for him to come over and they got into one of the scouts. In the mean time john got behind the flight console, going over the details on how to operate this thing in his head.  
  
"Flight control, this is Commander Crichton, requesting permission to disembark."  
  
Though permission from Flight Control was only needed if there was alot of traffic going on, or they came back and they needed to find a spot to park, he asked anyway.  
  
"Commander Crichton, this is Flight Control. You have permission. Have fun, sir."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
And with that, he fired up the engines, activated the cloaking screen and flew through the force field seperating the vacuum of space from the atmosphere inside.  
  
Everything went well, and all in all, John didn't learn much that he didn't already know. The food they sold was apparently well liked, since every shopkeeper who got a taste wanted to buy it, sure of the fact that they could sell it with high profits. And after a few weeks of doing reconnisance, all the while also trying to find out where Moya was, John finally stumbled upon something. No knowledge about Moya, though it seemed there was a Peacekeeper Command Carrier in the neighbourhood. When he told this to the Captain, the Captain asked him to asses the situation and give advice. Should they make a jump, or should they try to find out more? As far as the Captain was concerned, this was as good as time as any to make contact with the Peacekeepers and determine their intentions. So, against his gut feeling that the normalcy was soon over, John gave the advice to stay, and the decision was made, and John started another reconnisance run.  
  
-  
  
-  
  
Just an author's note in between: The Farscape part of this story, as you know, starts at the end of Unrealized Realities, with the exception that John isn't floating around Earth. From there on it gets slightly AU. Since the networks here don't broadcast Farscape, I have to view the episodes online. Wich accounts for the fact that I do not see them chronologial order, so I don't know exactly if Scorpius and Sikozu were on board Moya at the time of Unrealized Reality. For the sake of this story, I assume they are not. Also, Scorpius was killed at Arrnesk, Sikozu I might bring into this story at some point, though I find her character wholly uninteresting, and Grayza will still have that meeting at Katratzi and John will still interrupt, though in another way then on the show. Let's get on with the story.   
  
-  
  
-  
  
"No Chiana, Aeryn and I will go. You stay here on Moya."  
  
That particular sentence wasn't well liked by the small Nebari girl.  
  
"Frell you D'argo! I'm going if you want it or not! John has been seen in this area! Besides, I'm NOT going to sit around, playing frelling babysitter to Stark and frelling Noranti! Frell!"  
  
Chiana was shouting at him. D'Argo understood, they all missed John very much and they all wanted to go. That was not to say that he was going to let her go to the commerce planet, however.  
  
"Oh, and who WILL babysit them if you're not here? You really think that having Stark and Noranti alone on Moya is any good? You will stay, and my decision is final."  
  
At this point Chiana was almost exhausted from pummeling D'argo, and began to cry.  
  
"But I want to go.. I want to go.. miss John."  
  
"We all do, and I promise you, if we find him, we'll be back as soon as possible. I'm sorry, but it's just not safe for you to go out right now while you're having problems with your visions. It won't help you if we run into Peacekeepers."  
  
"D'Argo is right", answered Aeryn, who watched the whole exchange. That did get the attention from both D'Argo and Chiana. Not because of what Aeryn said, more because of the fact that she spoke at all. They missed John, but of the entire crew of Moya, she was probably the most affected of them all. Since John was sucked down a wormhole she has been very quiet. The first week she even kept in her quarters. So the decision was made. Chiana would stay on board Moya, and D'Argo and Aeryn would fly out in Lo'La to get confirmation of the rumors that John had been sighted in the neighbourhood.  
  
-  
  
-  
  
John was walking around the commerce planet, busy going through the market place trying to see if there was anything of value to them, star charts, data spools, that sort of thing. The Captain even wanted Peacekeeper technology, so the scientists onboard the Prommie could analyze it and know what they were up against. But, this day has not been kind to John so far. On this particular commerce planet, there was little of value to them, and after a whole day of strolling through the market place, he decided he'd seen enough for today. He was about to call it a day, when he saw Peacekeepers rounding the corner a few blocks from where he was. He quickly hissed to his companions:  
  
"Those are Peacekeepers. Stay low, it would be best if we got out of here without being noticed. If we are noticed, go with the plan. Allright?"  
  
Though luck wasn't on John's side that thay, and the ranking officer from the Peacekeeper squad quickly took notice of them, coming their way.  
  
"You know the plan. Act like smug arrogant officers and let me do the talking. Let's do it", hissed John.  
  
The Peacekeeper Luitenant was the first to speak:  
  
"I have never seen your uniform before. State your name, rank and regiment."  
  
John replied in style.  
  
"That is of no concern to you, Luitenant", he said, stressing the title, "but I will humour you, because I am in the mood to do so. I'm Commander Han, Solo Regiment."  
  
"I have never heard of that regiment either. What is your mission here?", the Peacekeeper Luitenant responded, distrust evident in his face. John looked smug and a bit angry.  
  
"That is because it is not for you to know of, neither is my mission. And I would watch my tongue if I were you, Luitenant, or you could find yourself transferred to the next available patrol duty in the Decca system."  
  
That thinly veiled threat did it's job. Patrolling in the Decca system was not what any aspiring Peacekeeper officer wanted. It was near Sebecea, the home world, and so deep into Peacekeeper territory that nothing happened there, and because of that there were also almost no options to advance in the hierarchy. If you were transferred to such an assignment, you could kiss your career goodbye. Though a Peacekeeper officer would never think of phrasing it that way.  
  
The officer, to his credit, quickly snapped to attention. "Yes, Sir!"  
  
"Also, you are not to report this sighting to your superior officers. Make sure the officers with you understand this as well. I have Kappa Three access, and I can, and I WILL, check your Carrier's logs. If I find ANY report mentioning me, then your career is over, understood?"  
  
"Perfectly, Sir!"  
  
"Now get out of my sight, Luitenant", and with that the Peacekeeper and his officers quickly walked away, making sure they forgot this meeting.  
  
Cain commented:  
  
"Well, that went well. It seems atleast that thing from your reports about Peacekeepers are true, they certainly don't use their brains", he said with a smile.  
  
John grunted his agreement.  
  
"Hmpf. Let's head back to the scout. I haven't got any doubt that there are more Peacekeepers patrolling the area, and we might not be so lucky next time. I should have anticipated some people recognizing me, the Carrier we saw on our long-range scanners earlier is probably here for me."  
  
"What did you do, anyway, to have them come after you like you've got honey on your butt, Crichton, if I may ask?" Cain asked.  
  
"Well, basically, I let them realize they aren't the most superior race in the galaxy. Let's leave it at that."  
  
John wasn't willing to go into detail right now, and as far as Commander Cain was concerned, that wasn't a problem. John was taking his 'unit' back to the scout, when suddenly he saw a big flash in front of hem, and the next thing he knew he was caught in the muscular arms of a Luxan, and the other three Humans had their disruptors pointed at the 'threat'. It took a while for the Luxan to release him though, so he couldn't give the order to stand down until he caught his breath. Luckily, the Humans recognized a hug when they saw one, and though alarmed, were content to let it play out for the moment.  
  
After the Luxan released him, he recognized him as D'Argo and adressed his unit: "Stand Down", still coughing, "I know him."  
  
D'Argo spoke into his comm: "Aeryn, I've found Crichton! After a moment of silence, only three words were heard: "I've reached Lo'La."  
  
"Crichton, we thought you were lost", D'Argo said, turning back to John, wearing a big grin, happy that he found his trusted friend and ally back. Though the unfamiliar uniform, and the three Sebeceans who were with John, wearing the same uniform, didn't escape him.  
  
"John, who are these Sebeceans?"  
  
"Humans, D'Argo, they're Humans", John said, wearing a big grin himself. Wait till they found out that Humans weren't as primitive as they thought! He already could see the look on their faces. Shocking people was fun.  
  
"Walk with us to the spaceport, I'll tell ya everything that has happened. By the way, Aeryn's at Lo'La?"  
  
"Yes John. Shall we go there?"  
  
"No, that might not be wise. Though I want to see Aeryn more then anything in the world, she'll probably have to get over the shock of me being back 'n all, knowing how she is. It pains me, though."  
  
D'Argo could see the truth in John's statement.  
  
"You are probably correct. Did you arrive with a shuttlepod?"  
  
"Something like that", John sidestepped the question.  
  
John did the proper introductions, and they walked to John's scout. D'Argo was amazed at the fact that Humans were more advanced then he believed, but he was also saddened by the fact that he had no people left to call 'Family'. Especially John's father, D'Argo knew what it was not being able to see his son, and he thought it was probably even worse for John. By the time they rounded the last corner, and John's scout came into view, D'Argo's mouth fell open and John grinned widely.  
  
"THAT is your shuttle?"  
  
"Yeah, ain't she a beauty?", John said, still grinning from ear to ear. The scout displayed sleekness in it's lines, agileness and the black color, together with the blue glow from the Displacement engine and the blue details spoke of stylishness, but above all: it spoke of strength and agility. It awakened the warrior spirit in D'Argo as few vessels could, besides Lo'La, ofcourse.  
  
"How fast can she go? What weapons does she have?"  
  
John was concent in answering D'Argo's questions.  
  
"Well, she has a gravimetric drive, equivalent to Hetch 12, but she also has a Displacement Engine."  
  
This shocked D'Argo.  
  
"This vessel can traverse wormholes?"  
  
"Yep, and the pilot doesn't even need to think about 'em. Don't worry, the Peacekeepers won't get their hands on it."  
  
D'Argo made a facial impression indicating that that was indeed for the better. If the Peacekeepers got their hands on wormhole technology, the universe was frelled!  
  
"And, to answer your other question, she has 6 disrupter banks, a missile launcher, multiple layered defense shields and a cloaking screen."  
  
"She can cloak, just as Lo'La?"  
  
"Yup."  
  
That had John grinning. By now, John could almost see D'argo salivating. Not quite, but almost. It was damn funny to see.  
  
"And yes, I can take you for a ride sometime."  
  
D'Argo brightened even more at this prospect, if that was even possible. He sobered again.  
  
"John, I should go to Lo'La."  
  
"Sure thing. Is Moya around?"  
  
"She is hiding in the second gas giant of this system."  
  
"Okay, tell her to follow my scout. I'll contact her and leave a comm signal open so she can follow me, I'm not alone. She'll be safer with us."  
  
D'Argo nodded his affirmation, and left for Lo'La. John and the rest of his unit got into the scout, engaged the cloaking screen, the gravimetric drive and sped away from the planet. Inside, questions assaulted him.  
  
"That was D'Argo, from the band of prisoners you were with?"  
  
"Yes, Officer Haagman, that was D'Argo. Now I can tell you more over a drink in the galley, but for now we have to do our duty. There's a defenceless Leviathan out there, my home, and now I finally have the oppertunity to keep her safe, I will make damn sure of it that she gets that protection."  
  
Commander Cain could see where that reasoning was coming from, and he would probably have dome the same in John's place, though he managed a warning:  
  
"I don't know if Captain Hawk would agree with you, Crichton."  
  
Crichton nodded his agreement, "True, but I'll convince him. I must. Besides, the crew of Moya and Moya's datastores are, after all, a valuable source of information. It would be in our best interests to keep them safe, would it not?"  
  
That closed the discussion for now. John scanned the Gas Giant, and Moya came up on his scanners, after wich he established a Comm Link. A picture appeared on the viewscreen in front of him, and it showed the golden-brown hued Command Deck of Moya, with Chiana behind a console, in shock. After a few seconds, the moment was broken and she jumped around in joy, her exitement almost seeming to have no bounds.  
  
"John! You're back!"  
  
"Yeah, Pip, It's damn good to see ya again. Listen, I'm cloaked, but I'll keep this comm signal open. Tell Pilot to track me using this signal, and to follow me. It's important."  
  
"Okay Crichton, I will."  
  
"All right, see ya soon Chi."  
  
He aborted the 2 way signal, converting the link to an identifier signal only. He hoped Pilot would indeed follow him, and he set a course for the Prometheus at somewhat under the maximum speed of Moya, since he didn't know what shape she was in.  
  
- 


	3. Chapter III

  
  
-  
  
"Pilot, Crichton asked you to follow this comm signal", Chiana said to Pilot wich had appeared in the clamshell.  
  
"Yes Chiana, I monitored the transmission, but Moya cannot move until Ka D'Argo and Officer Sun are back, though we see them coming out of the atmosphere of the commerce planet right now. We'll follow Commander Crichton once they're inside the hangar bay."  
  
And so they went, at the moment Lo'La set down in the hangar bay, Moya emerged from the gas giant, and followed Crichton's signal. The crew weren't the only ones who missed Crichton. Moya had missed him also. They had become a family, something wich she had not experienced before, and she got a little frightened at the prospect of losing it, for Crichton was the bond that hold them all together. She communicated this to Pilot, but he assured her that that feeling was normal, and shared by him.  
  
By that time, D'Argo and Aeryn had come up to command. Aeryn was suitably pissed at Crichton for not coming to Lo'La to see her in person, and she made sure that everybody on command deck knew it. Though it was Chiana who spelled it out for her.  
  
"Aeryn, stop being a pain in the eema! You KNOW why he didn't come to see you! Every time you and he get seperated for a time, you revert back to your Peacekeeper ways, and treat him as bad as a pile of dren! This time, I applaud him for his smartness, and I hope you get your act together before he comes on board! Otherwise, I might just have to make sure he avoids you!"  
  
At that, Aeryn made a spurt at Chiana, ready to pummel her into submission, but D'argo stepped in front of her and she smacked against his chest. It helped to bring her back to a somewhat more reasonable state.  
  
"Aeryn, she's right. Every time, you HAVE been acting like an eema, and I do NOT blame him for acting this way! If you want him to come see you in person, let him SEE that it is going to be different this time!"  
  
Though she did not like to admit it, they were right. She had to take up their advice.  
  
That problem solved, D'Argo put his attention back at the console in front of him.  
  
"Captain D'Argo, Moya senses a large vessel on the edge of her sensor horizon."  
  
"Yes Pilot, I see it. Is it a Command Carrier?"  
  
"It does not correspond to any known vessel in Moya's Database."  
  
"Then it's good pilot, this was to be expected."  
  
At this, Aeryn flared up again.  
  
"What do you mean 'this was to be expected'?! That could be a frelling warship and we're heading right for it!"  
  
"Aeryn, John didn't came alone. It seems that Humans aren't as primitive as we thought, and he as well."  
  
"You're not making any sense."  
  
"We'll let him explain, all right?"  
  
"Very well, but Pilot, if you sense any hostile action from that vessel, starburst immediately!"  
  
"We will, Officer Sun", Pilot replied, and he kept Moya's main sensors trained on the vessel. He also displayed in on the viewscreen on command when they were in sufficient range, since the crew could have any useful input.  
  
"Wow, it looks as if it could destroy a Command Carrier without any trouble!", Chiana said, in awe when the vessel apeared on the viewscreen, with the 2 smaller ones flanking it.  
  
"From what John said about his scout, I am certain it can", D'argo replied, on his turn getting a reaction from Aeryn:  
  
"That's impossible. Aside from a Scarren Dreadnaught or a Nebari Hostship, there is no known event where a single vessel has destroyed an entire command carrier."  
  
D'Argo could have replied about what John did at Dam-Ba-Da, singlehandedly destroying a Scarren Dreadnaught, though he thought better of it, since it was John's clone who did that, and it was probably still to painful for Aeryn to be confronted by. So he was content to not give a reply back.  
  
-  
  
-  
  
Inside John's scout however, things were a bit different.  
  
"Commander, you cannot just take a stray dog home, expecting us to take care of it!"  
  
Captain Hawk didn't like this one bit. What if it came to a battle with a Peacekeeper Command Carrier? They could not ánd battle with the carrier, ánd protect the Leviathan from harm.  
  
"When a sufficiently hazardous situation arrives, Moya will starburst or hide. I can guarantee that she will not be a burden. She has survived without this kind of protection countless times, but that doesn't mean that now I CAN give her that protection, it isn't needed, Sir!"  
  
"Commander Crichton, you are being unduly influenced by your feelings of that vessel and it's crew."  
  
"With all due respect sir, you can't take the chance that Moya will come to harm. What if we need data that she has in her datastores, and pirates have destroyed her? Damn yes I'm being influenced! But it's not for nothing. I want, no I need my friends around me. They will not abandon Moya, nor will I abandon them."  
  
The Captain was now quickly becoming angry. He liked Crichton, he really did. But his respect for people depended on how honourably they were, even moreso then for the Luxans, and blackmailing someone was one of the worst you could try with Hawk.  
  
"Are you BLACKMAILING me, COMMANDER?", he said, stressing Crichton's title.  
  
Crichton tried to level the situation.  
  
"No, no, that's not what I meant, Sir. I'm sorry. It's just that I want her to have our protection, and because of the fact that she will starburst or hide when she could become a burden, I see no need nót to protect her."  
  
"Commander, if you are so sure she will starburst when she could become a burden, what good will our protection do then?"  
  
"You think a little to big at the moment, Sir. The Peacekeepers, Scarrens and Nebari could blast her out of the sky at any moment, that is certainly true. But though they are our only problems, hers are more varied. From pirates to smugglers, from little prowler details to.. indigestion problems. For once I would have my friends, that includes Pilot and Moya herself, have some peace for a while. And being protected by us could do that. We could replenish their food source, pirates won't attack her, we could help whatever problem Moya's having, and the scientists could study and experience biomechanoid technology as a bonus. She really is something, you know."  
  
"Allright Crichton, you have me convinced. For now. Though when I say she has to go, she will go, understood?"  
  
"Yes, Sir."  
  
"Also, you will NEVER EVER pull a stunt like that again! If you EVER even so much as create a stray THOUGHT about blackmailing me, I will have your HEAD ON A FUCKING PLATTER IS THAT UNDERSTOOD, COMMANDER!!"  
  
"Perfectly, Sir."  
  
"Good, now that that's out of the way, let's give your friends a warm welcome, shall we?"  
  
-  
  
-  
  
Pilot appeared on the clamshell in command.   
  
"The vessel is contacting us."  
  
D'argo replied: "Open a comm frequency."  
  
An image appeared on the viewscreen. It was obviously a command center of sorts. The walls were white and black, with a few gray accents and various Sebecean-looking people were at work. The man in the middle stood up and took a few steps forward.  
  
"I am Captain Hawk, commanding the Earth Force Battlecruiser Prometheus. Please position yourself under our vessel, so we can protect you. You are invited to come onboard, I am currently sending flight instructions, and Crichton will be waiting for you in the Main Hangar Bay. You will get a tour of our vessel, and are expected for dinner in two hours over at the Senior Briefing Room. I will attend, so will my Head Officer and Commander Crichton. Till then, Hawk out."  
  
Chiana was the first to respond: "Well, that was abrupt.. But Earth Force Battlecruiser? That thing's from Earth? Drad!", she grinned.  
  
D'Argo grinned back, "If that ship is anything like Crichton's scout, it's going to be a 'drad' tour indeed. Though a ship full of Humans frightens me a bit."  
  
This pushed them both into a full laughter spree, releasing all the stress that was building up.  
  
"On a ship full of Crichtons", the Nebari managed to utter between her fits of laughter, "we'd go crazy within microts."  
  
To that statement, D'argo agreed.  
  
"Pilot", D'Argo started to say, but Pilot interrupted him, anticipating D'Argo's orders:  
  
"We are already moving into position, Captain D'Argo."  
  
Nobody had seen Noranti enter the command deck, though she had probably been there a while. She looked at D'Argo, looking strangely more sane then ever, and said:  
  
"I will stay on board and look after Stark. Go."  
  
D'Argo felt as if he was that little Luxan boy again, allowed to go to the Great Warrior Halls for the first time.  
  
He and Chiana turned and walked to the door of the command deck, when Chiana turned.  
  
"Aeryn? Aren't you coming?"  
  
Aeryn was still staring at the screen.  
  
"Aeryn?"  
  
"No."  
  
"What, why not?"  
  
"He would not want me there."  
  
"Why in hezmana's name would you think such a thing?", D'Argo said.  
  
At this point she exploded.  
  
"You heard yourself! It's an Earth vessel! He is going to stay there! With his fellow Humans! I'm not needed there, he now has them!"  
  
At this point the collapsed against a console, crying.  
  
Having this next big shock, while she wasn't even recovered from the last, proved too much for her.  
  
Both Chiana and D'argo ran over to her, and Chiana grabbed her by her jawline to look her in the eyes.  
  
"Aeryn, he DOES need you. Don't you see that? He probably missed you more then you missed him. Now come."  
  
It took some time for both Chiana and D'Argo to convince her, but eventually they succeeded, the PK mask slipped back and she joined them. All she could think about was John. John, John and John.  
  
They got into a transport pod, reviewed the flight instructions given, and left moya's hangar. Being in space, in a tiny shuttlepod, above Moya and under the much larger Prometheus, they looked like two, though very different, giants deciding with part of the world to trample. Though Moya looked beautiful as always, they were well accustomed to her looks. They were not accustomed however, to the Prometheus.   
  
Up close it looked even more intimidating then it did on the viewscreen. They entered the hangar bay, and landed on the free spot indicated. The view of the hangar bay, seeing so much fighters all in long straight rows, gave Aeryn some flashbacks about her time with the Peacekeepers. Though she has thrown away the Peacekeeper doctrine, her past military life would be a part of her, always.  
  
They landed, and got out of the pod. They could already see 2 people coming for them, of wich one was John. Chiana remarked:  
  
"Well, aren't you going to run up to him, Aeryn?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Well, suit yourself then", Chiana said, and ran up to John. He wore a big smile when she jumped in his arms and gave him a quick kiss on the lips and gave him a large hug full of love and friendschip. Chi was like a little sister to him, and he has missed her very much.  
  
"Yo Pip! Take it easy will ya."  
  
"Will do, Old Man", she grinned, "I missed you."  
  
"So did I Chi, so did I."  
  
When he arrived a few meters in front of Aeryn, he took a few tentative steps, and asked hesistantly:  
  
"Aeryn?"  
  
He saw a tear on her jaw, and wasted no more time running up to her.  
  
"I missed you John."  
  
He kissed her and held her in a long lovingly embrace.  
  
"I missed you too, babe. I love you."  
  
After a few minutes, John stood back, and proper introductions were made.  
  
"Let me be the first to officialy welcome you to the Prometheus. Let's begin our tour, shall we?", Cain said, and he lead them on a tour through the Prommie's innards. Aeryn was suitably impressed, the men spoke of great discipline and the vessel spoke of powerful technology, but without the cruel and cold atmosphere always present on a PK Carrier. So was D'Argo, but Chiana wasn't really that much interested. Though now that they found John, it really didn't matter.  
  
All the while, questions were raised and answers were given.  
  
"But how is this possible John?", D'Argo said, "you indicated that your people had just barely escaped your own atmosphere?"  
  
"Well, you know the first wormhole that brought me here? I was slingshotted into the future. Our planet has been out in space for quite a while now."  
  
"It must be hard, suddenly finding yourself thousands of cycles in the future."  
  
D'Argo patted him on the back.  
  
"Yeah it is, there's no-one left back on Earth for me. But what are you talking about, thousands of cycles? I've been shot 300 cycles into the future D'argo, not thousands", he said with a smile.  
  
"But that's ridiculous!", Aeryn broke in, "You could not have possibly gone from that bucket of dren you call a 'module', to THIS, in just 300 cycles!"  
  
Commander Cain, who lead the tour replied:  
  
"But we have, Officer Sun. What you see here is 300 years of development from John's perspective. Though I must admit, we didn't do it entirely on our own, we began with reverse-engineering a Goa'uld Death Glider, and we've reverse-enigneered some other things here and there, mostly from knowledge depositories left by the Ancients. But still, we did most of the stuff on our own."  
  
This stunned them, if they had become this advanced in just 300 cycles, imagine what Humans would be like in another 300 cycles! Suddenly the intergalactic playfield became a whole lot smaller.  
  
The tour ended, and Commander Cain led them into the Senior Briefing Room. It was somewhat smaller then the Galley on Moya, though, but still large enough to hold twice the people that would be having dinner now. Cain invited them to sit, and Captain Hawk entered.  
  
"It has been said before, but I will say it again anyway: Welcome to the Prometheus, gentlemen. The pride of the 'fleet", he boasted proudly. Introductions were made, and they sat down, the whole table decked and full of food.  
  
"I'm not sure wich foods are safe for you and wich are not, due to your non-Human physiology, but I have the Doctor on stand-by, if anything should go wrong. Take whatever your wish, but please, do emtpy your plate once you've made your choices. Though we have an abundance of food, we're not used to throwing away large amounts of excess food."  
  
They were eating, and enjoying themselves and then finally the current state of galactic affairs came up in the conversation.  
  
"But I do like to know, why are you here?" D'argo asked, blunt as always.  
  
Captain Hawk nodded, "a fair question. I wondered when it was going to be asked. To keep it simple, we are here to assess the Peacekeeper, Scarren and Nebari threat to both our neighbourhood and this neighbourhood."  
  
"What will you do if either a Scarren Dreadnaught or a Peacekeeper Command Carrier sees you on their scanners? There is a carrier just a few systems away from here."  
  
"Yes, we know. I think now is a good time as any to verify our information. We'll attract the carrier's attention and when it rises to the bait, we'll try to verify their intentions, and if neccasery broker a non-agression pact with them."  
  
"That is not possible", Aeryn said.  
  
"That might be so, but we still have to try. If they will have none of it, and they fire on us, we will fire back, I assure you. Our Asgard allies have assured us that the Peacekeepers are a threat that cannot be ignored, and if it cannot be solved in any peaceful means, then we will return to Earth, bring back a few brothers and sisters and some of our friends. Better to solve the problem here, then in our own backyard. We might even get a few new allies. And this neighbourhood will become a lot more friendly with the big bullies out of the picture."  
  
"You are planning to go to war with the Peacekeepers?", D'Argo looked shocked.  
  
"As I already said, if all peaceful means are exploited, and there is no remedy to the situation that way, then we will resort to forcefully remove the Peacekeeper's influence, yes. We don't know what to do with the Scarrans yet, though. At this point, it seems inevitable that we'll have to go to war with them. If John's information is correct, that is, and no peace or non-agression-pact can be arranged. And as far as the Nebari are concerned, Chiana, we hope we could examine you, and the virus you carry, so our Doctors may try to find an antidote. The Asgard even have left a delegation of Medical Technicians onboard our vessel for this express purpose."  
  
"How will you know that when it comes to an all-out war, either the Peacekeepers or the Scarrens or even the Nebari won't destroy you? The Nebari Hostship is the most advanced and powerful vessel known."  
  
"A valid point, but our Asgard allies assured us that the Peacekeepers are no match for us. In a ship to ship confrontation, we wouldn't be able to take on more then four or five carriers, that's true. So unless it comes to a confrontation with a larger force then that, we would have no problem on our hands. Besides, we have two escorts, so the odds would be even more in our favour. Same goes for two Scarren Dreadnaughts. But with our Displacement Drive, we wouldn't have to. And both the Peacekeepers and the Scarrens have lost alot of people and ships in the skirmishes, so if they were not to combine forces, then they would not be able to stand up against our entire fleet. The Nebari Hostship is a powerful vessel indeed, the Asgard have told us that much, but they also told us that there are just 5 Hostships in the entire Nebari fleet. They are not a problem. The virus, however, is. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."  
  
"That's alot of 'if's", John said.  
  
"That is true, but we'll just have to keep our hopes up, don't we?"  
  
"Why did you come here, instead of fortifying your borders and making your fleet as strong as possible? If you keep up this level of advancement, just 50 or 100 cycles or so in isolation would make you that much stronger then the Peacekeepers", Aeryn asked, "Also, who are these Asgard you speak of, and how come they have so much knowledge about this area of space, while we've never heard of them?"  
  
Captain Hawk was satisfied playing the ball to Commander Cain.  
  
"The Asgard assured us that our explorers in this area, one is already coming to meet us by the way, would have made contact with the Peacekeepers within 2 years."  
  
"Cycles", John piped in. Cain continued.  
  
"Right, 2 cycles. So it wouldn't have made any difference, except for the fact that the 2 explorers are dated by our standards and would not survive a full out confrontation with more then one PK command carrier, even if they were bundled together. Thus sending us out here, at this time, was deemed the best option. As for your second question, the Asgard control their entire galaxy, and are thousands of years in front of us technology-wise. For example: We would need almost 50 vessels like the Prometheus to have an almost equal chance against one of their battleships. The sensor arrays in their galaxy reach as far as not only their entire galaxy, but ours and a few neighbouring ones as well. And that explains their information about this part of our galaxy."  
  
"Well, if they're so advanced, why not send a few of their ships out here?"  
  
"They are just getting out of their own war with the Replicators, and have no ships to spare. And they have a few other weaknesses wich I'm not willing to discuss. Besides, the situation here concerns us more then them, it wouldn't feel right having them do our dirty work, so to speak."  
  
Then Hawk's communit beeped. He tapped it, and his Head Tactical Officer was heard.  
  
"Captain, there's a large vessel appearing on the edge of our sensor horizon. The computer identifies it as a Peacekeeper Command Carrier."  
  
"Well gentlemen, the show is about to begin. Would you care to join me on the brige? I'm sure we've got a few seats to spare at the sides."  
  
On the way, D'argo commed Pilot.  
  
"Pilot!"  
  
"Yes, Ka D'argo?"  
  
"You and Moya must re-enter the second gas giant. There's a Command Carrier coming."  
  
"Moya hasn't seen it yet. Are you sure? And what of-"  
  
"Yes Pilot, I'm sure. We will stay here. When it's safe for you and Moya to come out, we will return."  
  
"Ofcourse, Ka D'Argo."  
  
With that, Moya vacated her spot under the Prometheus' belly and entered the gas giant.  
  
Once on the Bridge, the Captain immediately began issuing out orders to his crew.  
  
"Ops, can you make it look like a comm channel is coming from one of the escorts, while it's actually coming from us?"  
  
"Yes, Captain, but why would you want tha-"  
  
Captain Hawk interrupted him.  
  
"Let's not show our hand yet, shall we? Raise the cloaking screen, and prepare to decloak, raise defense shields and arm weapons on my command. Tell one of our escorts to do the same, but keep the other one visible. Make it look like it's only us, on that escort, allright? If the Peacekeepers are really what everything we know about them indicates, then they will see it as an inferior vessel, and try to board it. That's where we come in. And, if our information is incorrect, on the other hand, they will be off without ever having seen us. Both ways, we'll keep our cards to our chest. Anyway, inform the Castor and the Pollux of our plan", the Captain said.  
  
"This is what we've come for people. Let's do it!"  
  
-  
  
-  
  
Author's Notes: I've already written this in the last week. More is coming, though I won't have an update every day, since I simply do not have that much time nor inspiration. I hope my writing gets well recieved, but as I've stated in the disclaimer part, I love comments, especially constructive ones. This is, after all, my first attempt at writing fan fiction, in a non-native tongue even, so it's bound to be mistake galore. Praises are also welcome. ;) Thanks.   
  
- 


	4. Chapter IV

  
  
-  
  
Author's Notes: First off, I want to thank you all for your reviews. The encouraging support is overwhelming, I didn't even dare to have hope for 2 or 3 reviews, let alone almost 20! I really appreciate it! Now to answer a few in particular:  
  
iris3: Well, you're in for a surprise evil smile. The Humans might be superior in most respects, but did you really think that they would just wipe the PK's asses (and Nebari and Scarran) and everything would be just peachy afterwards? There'll be a lot of surprises coming up, if I can help it.  
  
andrewjameswilliams: That was my intention. I envision the Humans in my tale are in some ways above what the Tollen were in the Stargate series, and in some ways below what they were. I might let 'em have a few phase-shifting devices or some other nifty little prototype trinkets though. I'm trying to create a few funny scenes as well, to broaden my scope of writing.  
  
Cal: Well, if you are available?  
  
Bolo: Humans might have better tech, but they'll never blindly put all their cards in their technology. They haven't forgotten the Asgard. And, the Tollen ofcourse. Also, besides the planets already colonized with Humans by the Goa'uld, Earth has set up quite a few colonies of themselves, with the same level of development as Earth, obviously. They're not exploring and patrolling space for nothing, you know. ;) Oh, by the way, there will be 2 main sidearms in this story. One wich is an energy-type weapon, somewhat like a Zat. Humanbuilt. In use by most officers. The other one, larger, will be used when troops are deployed or by security officers onboard. It can fire energypulses, like a zat, for stunning, killing or disintegrating, but it can also fire Tritanium-tipped bullets (a leftover from the Goa'uld war - they needed to get through those personal shields of theirs). Also, a phaseshift beam emitter is on the top, sort of like a TER, only better, since it can be adjusted, and every phase can be checked.  
  
Albertg: Ehh.. Now. ;)  
  
Again, thank you very much, all of you, with your reviews. The reason I haven't updated much lately, was because of time-constraints first and foremost. I've got a lot of things going on in my life right now, it's the most stressfull period ever, so the update schedule will be very erratic, before straightening out again. Also, I've been designing weapon-designs, ship designs and uniform designs. Some will probably be presented when I post the next chapter. Thank you very much for being patient with this. Though it might not be soon, this tale will be fully written, and I certainly do not want to rush any part. No matter how long it takes.  
  
I'll end the Author's Notes with this: If there's anyone who has MSN Messenger, is online often ánd is willing to beta-read for me, then please, contact me! Also, the emotional level will improve. It's just that since this is my first fic, it's hard to write something that isn't a bit detached. But I'll get it, eventually! For now, Enjoy!  
  
PS: Chapters One through Three have been slightly revised. Some very minor dialogue changes. There's one big change though: I see all episodes in a non-chronological order, so I didn't know John hadn't blown up Katratzi by the time of Unrealized Realities. That glaring error has now been fixed.  
  
Oh, one more thing: I don't know the American rating system that well, but there is some graphic sexual violence in the first part of this chapter. So here's a WARNING: Don't read the first part if you're easily offended!!   
  
-  
  
-  
  
Officer Seyk, a particular text-book model type of Peacekeeper officer, sat in the front seat of his Prowler. His regiment was sent ahead from the Command Carrier to secure the system before the Carrier would enter, so they fanned out. He was scanning the ships in the system, when one of them caught his attention. The computer identified the humanoids on that vessel to be of 'Unclassified' origin. He made sure to get that information to his superiors, that would certainly earn him a promotion! It's fortunate that he made sure that his little stunt a weeken ago wasn't noticed by his superiors, otherwise he would be transferred to some garbage scow already. He was thinking back a moment, thinking back to a weeken ago, revelling in the power he felt then.  
  
flashback  
  
High Command's sources told that the inferior Human animal had been spotted here, on this commerce planet, so he and the other members of his squadron were sent out to investigate. The carrier would arrive a few arns later. He was strolling the planet, when he suddenly realized that he hadn't recreated in 2 monens! So, true to his nature, he decided to recreate. He convinced his team members to join, and together they went to one of the local brothels.  
  
"I want an animal to recreate with. NOW!" Seyk shouted, when he stepped through the remains of what used to be the main entrance. The guy that runned the place, a stinking Kelorian, was quite afraid of the Peacekeepers.  
  
"Y..yes, ofcourse, I will get my girls so you can choose."  
  
"Do it FAST or I'll lose my temper!"  
  
To make his point, he raised his pulse pistol and aimed right between the eyes of the Kelorian. His eyes widened seeing a weapon trained on him.  
  
"Y.. y..yes!"  
  
A short time later, all his 'girls' were standing in the middle of the hall, in one long row.  
  
Seyk walked over, manhandled some of them, to get a feel.  
  
"You've got quite nice breasts, animal", he said, while he ripped the half-translucent top of one of the girls, fondling her breasts. He touched a few more and then stopped.  
  
"I'll take this one."  
  
Well, needless to say, there was no way he could let anyone know of this. If his superiors ever saw him recreating with something other then Sebecean, he would be branded irreversably contaminated and sentenced to the Living Death. Something he, obviously, did not want. So, he took the only option left to him, and that was murder. Though he did not think of it thay way, ofcourse. He was still a Peacekeeper after all, and murdering someone from a clearly inferior spiecies is justified. It was cleansing the universe of an inferior animals, not murder of an intelligent being, ofcourse.  
  
flash  
  
As they had intercourse, and he was ready to orgasm, he bit off one of her nipples and spit it in her face. At first, she was horrified. Her eyes bulged out of her skull, she could not comprehend what had just happened. All rational thoughts fleed her head. There was no pain, at first. Her nerves were dumbed by the shock. But then she overcame that shock, maybe it was not for the better, for he bit off her other nipple. And she screamed. Oh how she screamed.  
  
flash  
  
Somewhere, in the dark recesses of his mind, a voice told him to stop. He did not adhere to that voice, for he was many things, but a treasonous PK he was not.  
  
flash  
  
She -it, he reminded himself- screamed her lungs dry. Every hair on his body stood upright by the piercing scream but he did not take notice. He spit out the nipple, her breasts were bleeding. Blood dripped on the ground, a look of fear in her eyes. And he enjoyed it, immensely. His eyes became bloodshot, he let out a deep roar as he plunged on with his barbaricness, his madness.  
  
flash  
  
He released his sperm. And as he did, he took out his boot knive and stabbed her in the stomach area. Blood flowed, and every bit of conciousness crept away in a corner of his mind, for his basic, programmed, instincts took over.  
  
flash  
  
He cut her open from her abdomen right up to her neck. Her voice had long gone by then, but her eyes did not leave sight of him. She screamed in silence as her life was ripped away from her in one of the most brutal ways possible.  
  
flash  
  
After he was done, he cleaned his nife with a clean patch of her shirt, putting it back in his boot. It was, afterall, fitting, he thought, that an extension of her would clean the filth of his knive that she had inflicted upon it. And, it was fitting that an animal, particularly one who did not keep her species' bloodlines clean by only procreating with her own species, would be removed from the face of the universe. So he had killed her. And every other animal in that brothel. Some, he just killed with a pulse blast. Others, he sliced some arteries open. His colleages joined in. And his superiors never found out, though they wouldn't judge his killing if they did. The brothel was full of inferior virmin, after all.  
  
/flashback  
  
Back to the present. He scanned the vessel, and decided that he could not take it on with his regiment. Too many weapons on it. He wondered for a moment, how could inferiors get a vessel with so much weapons? On the other hand, the Nebari could too. So, the decision made to inform his superiors, he banked his Prowler, put the throttle on full and flew back to his Carrier.  
  
-  
  
-  
  
"Sir? A Peacekeeper.. Prowler? ..has just turned around and opened a comm channel to the Peacekeeper Carrier on the edge of the system", an officer commented.  
  
"Did they see us?"  
  
"No, sir. They only scanned the Pollux. They didn't see the Castor either, sir."  
  
"Well, good. Are you sure the transmission will be undetectable?"  
  
"What we've seen of their sensors, sir, they'll probably be able to detect the piggyback after a minute or so. I suggest aborting the transmission if it takes longer then that. Other then that, we're ready, sir."  
  
"Good, good."  
  
"The carrier is moving, sir, towards us."  
  
"Good. Tactical officer, when I give the signal..."  
  
"I know, sir."  
  
"Allright."  
  
When he was barely finished with that word, the Ops officer on duty spoke up:  
  
"Sir, incoming communication from the Carrier to the Pollux."  
  
"Let's have it."  
  
The Ops officer manipulated a few controls, touched a few buttons and the viewscreen replaced the view of stars with the image of another bridge, this one from a Peacekeeper Command Carrier. The commanding officer on that vessel spoke, hostility and arrogance almost tangible, even through the comm link:  
  
"Unidentified vessel. State your business in Peacekeeper space."  
  
The arrogance flowed from the viewscreen in waves, and Hawk didn't like it one bit. He stood up, took a few steps towards the viewscreen, and replied:  
  
"I'm Captain Hawk of the Earth Force Battlecruiser Prometheus. We're here on a mission of peace. Maybe we could open trade relations between our peoples, Captain.. I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name?"  
  
The last bit was said with an overly soothing, diplomatic tone.  
  
"My name is Captain Tyk of the Peacekeeper Carrier Lakra. You will power down your vessel and prepare to be boarded."  
  
Though one could not see it on his face, nor hear it in his tone, Hawk was positively incredulous. The nerve of this Captain to assume that he would power down his vessel, just like that! And the fact that every sign pointed to the conclusion that the Peacekeeper Captain fully believed that he would! The arrogance!  
  
"Captain, I'm sure we can work this out somehow. There is no need for hostilities."  
  
"Let me repeat this for you, inferior animal. You will power down your vessel and prepare to be boarded, and you will all recieve a painless and quick death."  
  
Everybody knew, from Intelligence files and Commander Crichton, that no such thing was forthcoming or even possible should Hawk agree. The fact that Captain Tyk said it nonetheless gave a lot away. The PK Captain continued:  
  
"If you will not comply, we will forcefully take every being on your vessel in our custody and your vessel will be destroyed!"  
  
Captain Hawk has just about had it. His jawline set, his eyes boring through the viewscreen, he replied:  
  
"I will do no such thing. And, I do not respond well to threats. Please, reconsider, and we can both leave this system without harm."  
  
At that, the Peacekeeper Carrier cut the commlink, and prowlers spat forth from it's docking bays.  
  
"Well, I'm pretty sure that can be interpreted as a hostile action. It seems you were right, Commander Crichton, not that I doubted it. Apparent from the number of fighters they are launching, they plan to overrun the Pollux with superior numbers. Well, we won't let them."  
  
While he was talking he sat back in his chair and adressed his Tactical Officer:  
  
"Decloak and put the Prommy on Phase Red, but don't fire yet: let them take the first shot. Tell our escorts to do the same."  
  
The Tactical Officer nodded. Hawk then manipulated a few controls on the 2 small consoles at the sides of his chair, and spoke up:  
  
"Phase Red: All crew to battlestations. This is not a drill. Repeat: Phase Red: All crew to battlestations."  
  
Out in space, there's the Pollux with a planetary backdrop. Somewhat distant, a huge, black PK Carrier approaches, Prowlers spewing forth from it's launch bays, forming an attack vector. Besides the Pollux, the Castor decloaks. And between them the just as huge Prometheus. Hesistation on the faces of the Prowler pilots is almost visible by their flight-manouvres, but it was only fleeting. The Prommy launched it's own fighters. There was no turning back now.  
  
-  
  
-  
  
...Whiteness...  
  
"Everything is going according to plan."  
  
"Is it?"  
  
"It appears so."  
  
"Appearances can be decieving."  
  
"That they can."  
  
"Look."  
  
"More distortions have appeared."  
  
"We should attempt to rectify them."  
  
"Why should we?"  
  
"The plan is not being followed."  
  
"It never is."  
  
"The more distortions we correct-"  
  
"-The more light there will be."  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Darkness is important also."  
  
"True. The polarity must be kept."  
  
"Then why should we interfere?"  
  
"For we are not the only ones. Look."  
  
"You are correct."  
  
"This is why we should interfere."  
  
"We have not interfered for millenia."  
  
"Rogue elements have."  
  
"We are not those rogue elements."  
  
"Are they so wrong?"  
  
"They are."  
  
"They have changed the universe."  
  
"That is precisely why they have descended."  
  
"Should we not attempt to change it back?"  
  
"We should not."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Balance will never be achieved regardless of our interference."  
  
"And?"  
  
"We could end up making matters worse."  
  
"We might make them better."  
  
"There is only a small chance of positive change."  
  
"Yet a chance exists."  
  
"Does that justify interfering?"  
  
"It does."  
  
"Look at the events that led to these rules."  
  
"Those do not apply here."  
  
"That is true."  
  
"That is why we must interfere."  
  
"There is risk of making things worse."  
  
"Without risk there is no success."  
  
"An old Human adage."  
  
"But true nonetheless."  
  
"You make a compelling argument."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
"You're welcome."  
  
"You are easily convinced."  
  
"That was not the case when you wanted to topple that galaxy with all those fish."  
  
"It was never toppled."  
  
"Only because you didn't dare topple it yourself."  
  
"You are right."  
  
"Ofcourse."  
  
"Let us take a closer look."  
  
"A wonderful idea."  
  
-  
  
-  
  
"Pilot! What the hezmana's going on!"  
  
Rygel the Sixteenth, Ex-Dominar of over 600 billion subjects, was floating through Moya's corridors, with his throneslet, at the best possible speed. Everyone was up in command, as far as he knew, and he was left out. As ususal. Those yotzes didn't even appreciate his presence! Oh how they would rue the day when he was back on his rightful throne! Not that he would harm them, ofcourse, he had begun to care about them. He wouldn't ever openly admit to such a thing. But still, they could have a little more respect, as befitted a Dominar, especially one of his stance! Much more respect!  
  
"Dominar, we are currently entering a gas giant."  
  
"And why the frell would we do such a thing, you yotz! Turn us around at once! I need to go to a commerce planet!"  
  
"Dominar Rygel. There's currently a Peacekeeper Command Carrier entering the system. If we do not hide, Moya will most certainly die. And I need not remind you that YOU would die with the rest of us."  
  
"I don't give a yotz! Starburst away, now! Pilot!"  
  
At that moment, he entered Command Deck. Stark was already there, sulking in a corner, mumbling something about 'no, yes, no, yes'. Noranti was tending to him and Chiana was turning around from the viewscreen. She evidently heard him, for she made a distinctive facial expression wich, if Rygel ever bothered to pay some attention to those, told him to get away from that area, and fast. But ofcourse, since he was a Dominar, and everyone should respect, obey and even idolize him, the thought of someone wanting him not in his or her presence didn't even come to his attention. Well, it did, fleetingly. But only due to the terrors he endured on the Zelbinion, and he wasn't about to think about those memories again. So he pushed them away. Chiana, on the other hand, had no such scrupules and had, at the moment, little patience regarding a small, smelly and utterly arrogant Hynerian who was complaining too much for his own good. So, she did the only thing she could. She burned off his eyebrows. Well, that was the action she was contemplating. But, common sense overtook her, and she snarled at him.  
  
"Rygel, we don't have time for your complaints! D'Argo and Aeryn are with Crichton on that vessel, and if we Starburst now we will lose them!"  
  
"Well, for the better! We can have their possessions!"  
  
"Rygel, if you don't shut your little mouth right now you will wish you did!"  
  
"But-"  
  
"RYGEL!"  
  
"Allright." He brabbled some Hynerian swearwords wich the microbes couldn't translate. Chiana didn't care though, all she cared about were her friends who were on that Human vessel.. wich was about to be attacked by a Command Carrier!  
  
-  
  
-  
  
huge white flash  
  
One moment, John was still where he was supposed to be, standing on the Bridge of the Prometheus, rubbing his arm (because of a rash he had developed when planetside recently and didn't bother to tell one of the shipboard doctors about), when suddenly a bright flash appeared. On instinct he shielded his eyes. Crichton shook his head, trying to get his senses to reactivate. He tried to identify his surroundings, but came up inconclusive. There was a lot of whiteness though. Only whiteness, as a matter of fact. The first conclusion Chrichton would draw was:  
  
"On no, no no no, not this again! It's the second frelling time! Where's the iceberg, huh? C'mon Einstein, show yourself!"  
  
Chrichton turned around, not that it was any good in a completely white enviroment without any visual pointers. A figure appeared. In front of him, this time. He, -well... it,- looked perfectly human. But, contrary to John's expectations, it didn't look like the Einstein he expected. But then again, that could mean nothing, for an entity that can take on any form it wishes. It looked positively nondescript. Regular clothes, regular haircut, even regular facial features. It looked male though. Not that it proved anything, ofcourse. It locked eyes with John and spoke:  
  
"Time."  
  
It took hardly a moment for John to formulate a response.  
  
"Yeah yeah, time is relative, been there, done that."  
  
There was a pause, before the entity spoke again.  
  
"It was a statement, not a question. Please, let me finish, John Chrichton."  
  
'How is it that every frelling entity in the whole frelling universe knows my name?', John thought, 'Damn!'  
  
Well, humouring this alien couldn't hurt him, he supposed. For now, he had no way of escaping anyway.  
  
"Time. Time is meaningless, yet it is all that exists. In your realm. It is the manifestation of thought. The stuff of the universe. Everything exists in a state of Oneness, of Now, yet alot of time has passed, from your point of view."  
  
"You're not making any sense. I wanna know: Why am I here?"  
  
"You will be told in a moment. Do you know who, what I am?"  
  
"No, and I don't frelling care right now! There's a lot of Peacekeeper butt to kick, so send me back!"  
  
At this, the entity chuckled. That was a change. Einstein certainly didn't chuckle.  
  
"That there is. I am... well, you may call me Phoebus. I've always had a penchant for Greek mythology. I am... Human."  
  
"Yeah, right, ofcourse you are. You've got control over space and time, or something close to it I assume, since you can apparenly take me here at will. Or is this all some kind of illusion?"  
  
"It is no illusion and yes, I have control over time and space, though it is somewhat limited. I am an ascended Human, just as many people have ascended from many other races. Yet, I am still fundamentally Human. You don't believe me, because... you have no evidence of my statements, is that correct? Well, I can relate to that, I've always been sort of a hardheaded example of my race myself. I'm going to reveal some things to you wich you will forget when this is over. What you, however, will retain is a rudimentary basis of this knowlege. You will also retain the path to learning the true nature of the universe. It will drive you, and new abilities will slowly form. You have already been altered by your experiences with the Ancients, and those events have already marked you for ascension. Yet, you only know a small part of the nature of the universe. And Humanity knows even less. For destiny to unfold correctly, Humanity will have to learn a few things, preferably through you."  
  
John was about to interrupt, but Phoebus would not let him. He held up his hand.  
  
"Please, do not interrupt, and refrain from asking questions when this all is over. Though I doubt you will have any questions left by then. What I'm about to show you, is the history, the future, of the Human race, as it's supposed to be. Remember what I told you about Time? Time permeates everything, on this plane of reality. Yet, it doesn't exist. Every entity in the universe is a writer, writing his, her or it's part in the great plan of destiny. Time is the manifestation of those writings, those thoughts. The physical world is an illusion, created by your thoughts, your convictions and your beliefs, just as those of every other sentient being in the physical part of this universe. Time is the material through with those thoughts, convictions and beliefs are manifested in a physical way. For without time, there would be nothing that could maintain it's physical illusion, only thought. Observe."  
  
Phoebus raised his arms in a chillingly Scarran manner, and suddenly all hell broke loose.  
  
Flashes of events, some in the far past, some in the far future. Humanity travelling the stars, losing a huge battle, being confined to Planet Earth without any technology. Humanity rising from the ashes, like a great Phoenix. Humanity reclaiming it's rightful place in a great alliance. Humanity claiming it's rightful place in the universe. Exploring everything, on this plane and countless others. The whole of Humanity ascending, to silently guide the next generation with what they've learned.  
  
And with every flash that appeared, John instantly knew every detail that could be known about it. Phoebus also spoke some complementary words:  
  
"Sometimes, when a peoples lose the knowledge of the universe they had when they evolved, they may become trapped in the world of the physical. Sometimes, they do not. And sometimes, they will balance on the edge for aeons. Humans have balanced on that edge. Always knowing there is more to be known, yet not nowing it. Look. Humans, evolving. Gaining some knowledge of the universe. Civilizations rising up, only to fall again. Spreading beyond their home planet, exploring the galaxy. Making alliances, making enemies. Battles, fighting, winning, losing. Humanity, almost destroyed, with a small portion left alive, brooding for the day to reclaim their rightful place. Earth. Humans devolved, lost the knowledge of the universe. But, the cycle repeated. Civilizations rise, only to fall again. Making it out into space with leaps and bounds, genetic memories prodding the subconcious minds. Alliances. Enemies. Defeating many evilness, only to become evil themselves, before only just realizing their mistake and returning to goodness. Humanity learning and re-learning their lessons. Re-exploring the galaxy, exploring the universe. Universal knowledge was gained, and eventually all have ascended, to make place for the younger ones. I was the last Human to be ascended."  
  
John was reeling a bit.  
  
"John Crichton. You are in a pivotal point in Human history. You are a focal point in many realized and unrealized realities. Therefore, you must succeed. Destiny. Written by the people who follow it. Your destiny is to unite this galaxy. Or atleast lay the foundation upon with others can build. It's your destiny to follow your destiny. You have already done so, and you have yet to do it. Time. Destiny."  
  
John locked eyes with Phoebus. And he understood.  
  
huge white flash  
  
-  
  
-  
  
Author's note: Wow, 4 new reviews have appeared, thank you all for the encouragements to continue writing! I have comments for 2 of them:  
  
Fatman: "[...] please hurry and update, my life depends on it." Gheh, the last part really had me smiling there. :D I'll take that as a very big compliment! :)  
  
Raneko: Those are valid points. Please, let me address them:  
  
-- 1st: The ESF uniforms aren't all Leather. There is actually not much leather in them, but a synthetic material wich looks like leather. It's the idea that those materials have better properties. I mean, it's set a few hundred years in the future, at this moment we're not using the uniforms of a few hundred years ago now, are we?  
  
-- 2nd: The Asgard do seem to have an annoying 'know it all' ability, don't they? The thing is, and their weaknesses will be revealed all too soon, that they know such things.. but can't act on them. That is one of their failings.  
  
-- 3rd: The explorers áre very close to making contact. SPOILER: One of them will make contact in one or two chapters from this one. The reason that at Earth they think that they're so far away is because they don't have real-time communications. In the time they were built, they did not yet develop the Displacement Drive, so they were forced to utilize Hyperspace for travel, and hyperspace messaging relays for communications. Still there is a time lag of a few months. And, without stargates, no way of contacting Earth in any other manner. Or that's the idea, atleast. I wanted it to be a great surprise :D  
  
Anyway, thanks for reading, please keep coming back and please review! Thank you!! :)  
  
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